


All Aboard The Train To Sadtown

by DigitalThespian



Series: Permutations [2]
Category: Stardew Valley (Video Game)
Genre: Animal Death, Character Study, Coping, Depression, F/M, Grief/Mourning, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Time Loop
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-11 01:15:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,399
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28306626
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DigitalThespian/pseuds/DigitalThespian
Summary: Things weren't as they should be.And then theyreallyweren't as they should be.
Relationships: Abigail/Male Player (Stardew Valley)
Series: Permutations [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2073213
Kudos: 5





	All Aboard The Train To Sadtown

**Author's Note:**

> ATTENTION: I'm not fucking around, this one is seriously depressing compared to my usual. You can absolutely skip it with no ill effects on your understanding of later installments in the series.
> 
> As always, if I forgot a tag let me know! (Especially for this one!)

After what felt like hours of tossing and turning the night before, she had finally drifted off to sleep; and now..

_Today was the day._

She swung her legs out of bed, nearly toppling over in surprise when she noticed several things all at once.

_This wasn't what I was wearing to bed.. Everything in my room moved, too, what—_

She saw the calendar.

Spring 1

New Farmer Arrives!

No. No way, this—this had to be a prank. Time travel wasn't real. She _knew_ , she'd talked to Kaleb about it time and again, this _couldn't_ be happening.

..She was supposed to be getting _married_ today.

She stood, dressing quickly. There was an easy way to find out. She walked out of her room, nearly colliding with her mother. "Oh, sorry mom. I have to go take care of something, I'll be back."

"Don't be out too long, we need your help with the store!"

Abigail heart plummeted. She hadn't had to do that in more than a year, either her mother was in on it, or..

"Why does your town have a discount LeFou shilling for JojaMart?" No. No no no.

Pierre barely held in a laugh as Morris spluttered indignantly. "I am the _manager_ I'll have you know, and—"

"Forget I said anything.." Abigail watched, dumbfounded, as Kaleb sighed and shook his head. "What can I get for—"

Morris put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't ignore me!"

Abigail swore the temperature dropped five degrees. "I don't know who you are, but you best move that hand before you regret it." Kaleb's voice was calm, but it was _not_ friendly—or even _civil_. That was _malice_ she heard under the surface, plain and simple.

"Are you _threatening_ me?!"

Kaleb turned with an apathetic expression; it was so out of _place_ on him, and Abigail felt her heart breaking more with every passing second. "Yes. You have five seconds before I break your nose."

Pierre was beginning to look nervous. "Now, now, I'm sure we can settle this without violence."

"Of course we can. All he has to do is walk away, it's not like I'd follow him. He'd have to mean something to me for me to do that." Morris stared in horror. "Come on, now. I'm sure Pierre doesn't want blood on his floor."

Abigail was floored. What _happened_ to her husband?! Why was he so.. _cold_..?

Morris stumbled backwards, running out of the store. Kaleb turned back to the counter, the flat, dead look in his eyes never leaving for a second. "I need bean starters."

She worked up the nerve to say something. "Hey, you're the new farmer, right? I'm Abigail, it's nice to meet you."

He looked over, and the corner of his mouth quirked up, just for a moment. "Kaleb. Charmed. Thanks for saying something." He turned back to Pierre, completed his purchase, and left, taking Abigail's heart with him.

* * *

"Hello, Abigail."

She looked over in surprise. "Rasmodius? You _never_ talk to me, what gives?"

"..How do you..? Oh. You Remember."

"Wait, are you saying you know what's going on?" She was on him in an instant, holding him by the collar. " _How do I get my husband back, **please**."_

"I.. I don't want to have to tell you this, but.. you don't. Time here has begun looping, somehow; from when he arrives, to three years later—to the day. You Remember because of your attachment to him, I would presume. He will remember nothing, and it is _essential_ you don't let him find out."

" _Why?_ " She cried. "I _need_ him, you don't understand."

"I do, more than you realize. But nevertheless, I cannot say more. If you love him, _do not let him find out_."

Abigail let go of him. "Sorry for grabbing your collar. I'm.. I'm going to go home. I need to be alone."

"I'm sorry, Abigail. Really. When you recover enough, however, I need to teach you something. He was very connected to the valley, as you know, and it was partially my doing; it's crucial that continue to be the case, but my presence in future loops could be.. troublesome. So I need to teach you to do it."

"..Alright. I'll come by.. eventually? Sorry.."

"That is fine; I will be handling it this loop, so you can take the time you need."

"..Yeah. Thanks."

* * *

"Hey.. what happened to that girl from the other day? Abigail, I think? She seemed excited to get to know me, which was nice, but then she just.. _vanished_ , I haven't seen her at _all_. Did something happen?"

Pierre exchanged a glance with his wife. "We think she's come down with something; she's always exhausted, sometimes she sleeps for sixteen hours, gets up to eat and sit silently in her room, and goes right back to bed."

"That sounds like depression to me."

"Wha—Abigail does not—how would _you_ know?"

"Been there. Not fun. Became an alcoholic for a while, never got up before two pm, usually in bed around three am. Repeat. You been getting 'I'm not hungry' at mealtimes?"

"Yes, how did you—"

"It's either that or mono, or maybe it's not, I'm not a fuckin' doctor. Sorry, I shouldn't stick my nose in other people's business. Just.. if you do _anything_ for me, make sure that even if she says no every _single_ time, _always_ ask if she wants to come eat dinner, or whatever it is, and _never_ be upset when she says no." He turned away, taking his purchases with him. "I've said my piece; I'll quit bothering you."

* * *

Robin walked down the path to the farm, concern etched on her features. Things had gotten worse with Demetrius.. He and Sebastian had gotten into another row, and when she tried to stop it he accused her of always siding with Sebastian. He had also implied that she had lingering feelings for Sebastian's father, which..

Not gonna happen. She shook her head. What was she going to _do_? What if.. what if she couldn't convince him? What if he.. left her? She stopped, staring blankly at the road.

..Would that really be so bad? The reason they were fighting.. for as anti-social as Sebastian was, Demetrius _was_ starting it most of the time.. Would things be.. _better_ if he left?

..Would things be better if _she_ left..? She didn't want to do that to Maru, but Sebastian would probably be thrilled, and that.. that hurt, to think she'd been putting her Sebby through this. But she'd done this song and dance already, he deserved stability, and there weren't exactly a lot of bachelors in Pelican Town even _close_ to old enough for her to not feel weird about it: Just Harvey, and Shane, neither of which were really her type—

—the farmer. Sure, he was the brooding melancholy type, but.. she _had_ seen flashes of what lay underneath. Sebastian would probably like him, and Maru would at least _tolerate_ him..

..And maybe he was cute, but that was no basis for this sort of decision—

She shook her head rapidly. What was she _thinking_?! Sure, he's being an asshole, but dammit, she married Demetrius because she loves him! She wasn't going to give up and back down; not now, not ever.

She squared her shoulders, continuing on to the farm to ask Kaleb if he'd seen her axe lying around.

The farm came into view, and her previous assuredness was _shattered_. There he was, sitting on his porch with a cat toy, and the most calm, at-peace smile she'd ever seen him wear. It was obvious from a glance he cared deeply about that cat, and seeing him like this only proved what she had thought she saw below the surface.

He was a man who didn't know what he wanted, and didn't know how to find out. But he _wanted_ to; he _wanted_ to be happy, he _wanted_ to enjoy life.

And he didn't know how, so he lashed out, pushed people away. It was silly for her to even _think_ of him as a replacement for Demetrius, he wouldn't be much better.

But now that she'd thought about it, the idea drifted around in the back of her mind, refusing to leave.

She realized she'd been staring, and called out. "Hey." He startled, the content expression on his face vanishing in an instant, and she winced. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you."

"It's.. fine." He looked at her warily. "Can I.. help you?"

"Oh! I wanted to know if you'd seen an axe lying around? I think it fell out of my cart."

"No, sorry; I don't really get off the farm much."

"That's okay; thanks anyway!"

He nodded, turning to go inside, and she called after him. "You should come to the Saloon on Friday!"

He paused, shaking his head. "..Pass. Crowds make me nervous."

And then the door closed behind him.

* * *

"..mrow.." Kaleb started, whipping his head around. It was dark, but he could have sworn that sounded like Tybalt; it was so _quiet_ , though, was he far away..? He felt something touch his leg. "..maow.." He looked down, eyes widening at the sight of Tybalt collapsed on the ground, one paw stretched out weakly, just barely able to brush his leg.

..there was a dark smear leading away from him into the trees. " _TYBALT!_ " Kaleb scooped him up as gently as he could, noticing immediately that he wasn't as warm as he should be, it was almost Summer, there was no reason for him to be this cold—

Harvey. He had to get Tybalt to Harvey. Harvey could save him; he was a doctor, right? That's what doctors do, they save people.

Kaleb turned on the ball of his foot, breaking into a run, trying his best not to jostle Tybalt too much. "Hang in there, it's gonna be okay, you're gonna be okay, I promise."

He reached the square in record time, stuttering to a halt. He pounded on the door. A few moments passed, and Kaleb raised his hand to knock again, but the door opened. "What on earth—Kaleb?"

" _Please_ , you have to help him." Tears ran down Kaleb's cheeks as he cradled the limp form of his cat to his chest. "He's all I have, I can't lose him."

Harvey's eyes widened. "Bring him in so I can see him."

Kaleb followed Harvey inside, barely holding it together as he murmured to Tybalt. "It's gonna be okay, Harvey's gonna help you." He looked up. "You can save him, right? _Please_."

Harvey took one look at the cat, and knew it was too late. Those were bite marks; deep ones, too. If this were a veterinary hospital, _maybe_ ; even then it would be dicey. With what he had here? Not a chance. He could stitch up surface wounds, but he had no way to stop the internal bleeding; the best he could do was give Tybalt some peace in his final moments.

Kaleb seemed to grasp Harvey's lack of an answer for what it was. "No.." He held the cat closer to his face, tears dripping into his fur as he sobbed. " _NO_ , Tybalt, I'm so sorry, I should have never let this _happen_ to you..!"

"..I'm sorry, Kaleb.. All I can do is ease his pain." Harvey felt his heart breaking; the first genuine display of emotion he'd ever seen from Kaleb, and it was _this_. Neither of them deserved this. But that was life, sometimes.

"..Okay." He swallowed hard. "Let's go, buddy, I've got you, it's gonna be oka—" He cut off, choking back another sob. "Harvey's gonna help you, Tybalt."

They went to the back, and Harvey heard him murmur something else. "I love you, buddy. You were the best friend I could have ever asked for; I'm so, _so_ proud of you." Another sob. "You're doing great."

Tybalt passed peacefully ten minutes later, lovingly cradled in Kaleb's arms.

"..Thanks, Harvey. At least I know he wasn't in pain, and was loved to the very end."

"You can stay for a while, if you need to."

"No, I—I need to do this now, or I never will. I'm going to bury him next to my grandfather's shrine. It's what he deserves." He gave Tybalt's still form a gentle kiss on the head. "..He's family."

* * *

No one saw the farmer in town after that; when they went to check on him, he would either look at them for a moment, blankly, then go back to what he was doing, or he would say "I appreciate it, but I just.. need some space," and walk away. Sometimes they found him sitting silently in front of the little gravestone he'd placed next to the shrine.

..those days he didn't respond at all.

Three days after it happened, Abigail knocked on his door. She felt guilty for promising to get to know him, and then holing herself up. Now that Tybalt had died.. she had no excuse. He surely needed someone, and he seemed happy that she had talked to him, so maybe..?

"..who is it."

Abigail felt another stab of heartache. She'd _never_ heard him sound like this, not _ever_. "It's Abigail. I heard you asked about me; I appreciate it, it meant a lot. Sorry that I said I'd love to get to know you and then.. didn't show my face again."

"..it's alright, I get it."

There was a long silence. "Do you still.. _want_ to get to know each other? I.."

"..maybe another day, but today's just.. not a good day. Thanks, though, Abigail. Really."

"Yeah, I get it; I'll put my number on a note in your mailbox so you can contact me if you feel up to it, that way we don't have to rely on chance encounters."

"That's very thoughtful of you, thank you."

* * *

A week passed with no sign of the farmer; some people murmured to each other worriedly, others less so.

"That poor boy, he must be devastated."

"He needs to quit moping if you ask me; it's not gonna bring his cat back, and it's not gonna make his crops grow. Maybe I sound harsh, but all the grief in the world won't keep him from starving to death."

Abigail grit her teeth. "We _didn't_ ask you, Pam."

"Jeez, girl, what's got _your_ panties in a twist?"

"I'm not in the mood for this. I'll see you guys later, I'm going to see how Robin's doing with the farmer." Sam and Sebastian waved as she stormed off.

Sam turned to Sebastian. "Oh yeah, you did say your mom was gonna invite him, didn't you?"

Sebastian nodded. "She's hoping that a party that's more spread out will be easier for him, and that since it's the whole town he'll feel less out of place."

"..Hasn't she been gone a while?"

"I assumed they were just talking. Like.. his cat died, man, that's rough. I can get wanting some space, and I can understand needing someone to talk to."

"I guess that's fair."

A distant shriek split the air, and Sebastian's head snapped over. "Jesus, that was _Abigail_! We gotta go, I've never seen something spook Abigail like that, this is _bad_."

As they ran for the farm, the inhabitants of Pelican Town looked on after them, unsure what to do.

Sam and Sebastian arrived in time to see Abigail sink to her knees in the open doorway of the farmhouse, hands over her mouth. Her feet slipped out from under her, and her rear plunked to the floor, but she didn't seem to notice. " _Abigail!_ What happened?!"

She didn't respond, and as they got closer, they could see silent tears streaming down her face. Sam knelt next to her, laying a gentle hand on her shoulder. "What's going on? Are you okay?!"

" _No!_ " He started at her sudden exclamation. She threw her arms around him, sobbing into his shoulder. "No, I'm not okay, how could I be okay, Sam, he's _gone_."

Sebastian furrowed his brow. "What do you mean? Did he just _leave_?"

Robin walked out of the farmhouse, eyes red. She sniffed. "No, Seb.. He's.. dead."

Her words rang in the air, and the silence was only broken by the sound of Abigail sobbing. "..No way, he.. Just like that.." Sebastian silently sat down, patting Abigail on the back. "We should have known, we should have _noticed!_ " She cried.

"Abi, we can't go down that road."

"And why not?!" She retorted. "I should have _known better_ , I should have _been there for him!_ "

"But how could you have known? We all tried, he just.. wasn't willing to let anyone in."

The three exchanged concerned glances as Abigail only cried harder.

* * *

"Rasmodius, what happens if we tell someone who isn't Kaleb?"

He started, then answered without turning to face her. "Well, I believe nothing would _happen_ ; but it would be unwise to widen the pool of people who could let slip to Kaleb—"

"He's dead."

"..I beg your pardon?"

"He's _dead, Rasmodius!_ "

He bristled at being shouted at, turning; but then he noticed the aura of intense grief around her, and his expression softened. "I.. I am sorry. I promise I would have warned you if I knew."

"I can't believe you didn't know he was dead! It's been two _weeks_!"

"I have remained here with minimal outside contact, as I don't want to disrupt whatever is keeping the loop balanced. If it destabilizes.. I do not know _what_ would happen, except that it would be cataclysmic. I will be absent in further loops to remove that possibility. Also for the reason that if additional people begin to Remember, they may not be as believing of my craft as you, and I may find myself with an angry mob at my door."

"I'll level with you; I'm still mulling over whether I want to beat the hell out of you." He took a half step back in shock. "You know more than I do. I am _the only_ resident who Remembers, and the loops apparently center around the man I decided I wanted to spend the _rest of my life with."_ She set her jaw, frowning. "But you still know more than me. You know I believe in magic. You _know_ I would never jeopardize him in any way; why didn't you tell me _anything_?"

"I've told you all I know. I'm just not as invested as you, so the lack of information doesn't bother me as much. I did not mean to imply there was something I wasn't telling you. I'm sorry, I really am, but what I've been doing is try to figure those things out."

She sighed. "And I had a feeling that was the answer, which is why I haven't laid you out."

"I appreciate that."

"I'm going home. You can teach me how to make the potion in a year or something when I don't feel like every second I'm alive is a living hell."

"Perhaps having something that you know will benefit him could ease your mind."

She stopped. "You're probably right, but my parents have been harping on me for a _week_ , and I'm really not up for admitting I'm wrong right now."

"Are you going to tell them?"

"Only if I have to. I don't want to be thrown in a psych ward."

"That is.. probably wise."

* * *

Pierre knocked on the door again. "Abigail, you can't stay in there forever!"

Her voice drifted quietly through the door. "..Go away."

He looked at Caroline in exasperation. She stepped close to the door. "Sweetie, we just want to understand why you're so upset, we're not trying to be the bad guys."

"I know."

"Then will you come out?"

"No."

"Will you at least talk to me?"

"I don't want to, but I will if it means you'll leave me _alone_."

"Abigail, your mother is trying to _help_ , there's no need to be rude!"

"I _get_ that you're trying to help! Okay? I get it! I just don't _want_ the help you're offering! It's not _personal_ , I just want to be," there was a pause. "..alone _._ "

"If it's affecting you this much, why won't you _tell us_?"

There was a bitter laugh. "You wouldn't believe me."

Pierre crossed his arms, though he knew she couldn't see it. "And why's that?"

"I just know, alright?"

"You never know till you try, Abi." Caroline worried her lip.

"..Fine. You wanna know why I've been all sorts of _fucked_ up." They gasped at her daughter's uncharacteristic language. "since the start of the year? It's because I'm _three years older_ than you think I am. I'm reliving the past. I've done this all once, and it went great, and the day I woke up on the first of spring was supposed to be my _goddamn wedding day! But no, now I'm **here** , and my husband is **dead**!_" There was a stunned silence, and Abigail continued, pain evident in her voice. "..so you'll have to forgive me if I'm not particularly excited to relive a piss-poor alternative to the best years of my life."

"That's—do you seriously expect us to believe that?!" Pierre was dumbfounded.

"Didn't I already say you wouldn't? _You_ were the ones who asked, don't get mad at me."

Caroline's shoulders fell. "Alright. You don't want to tell us. That's fine."

"No, you are not going to do this to your mother! If you want to be rude to me, fine; we fight sometimes, and you've been through something traumatic. But _she_ doesn't deserve this sort of treatment!"

"Pierre.."

"I told you the truth, what the _fuck_ else am I supposed to say? I can lie to you, something believable, if you want, but that's what it'll be; a _lie_."

"Watch your language!"

"I'm _twenty-five_ , I'll curse if I damn well feel like it! What are you gonna do, _ground me to my room_?"

"The router is out here, you know."

"Do it, then. Turn off the wi-fi, or change the password, or whatever you're gonna do. See if I care."

"Either tell us the truth, or hand over your phone; if you're going to act like a child, I'm going to treat you like one."

"You're the one acting like a child, dad. You have _no way_ to make me give it to you; and I _told you_ the truth. But fine; in the interest of making a point." The door cracked, and Abigail's phone sailed out, bouncing off the hallway floor as the door closed again. "All yours. Have a nice day, or whatever."

Her parents stared at it in shock as it clattered to a halt against the wall. "Abigail, I—"

"Mom, I appreciate you trying to help, but I have _had it_. I don't want to be mean to you. Dad's right, you don't deserve that. So please just go, because I am _at my limit_ right now."

The two parents looked at each other in horror, then slowly moved to the living room. Caroline wrung her hands. "Pierre, what if.. what if she's _not_ lying? I know that's a crazy story, but.. if it was true, it _would_ explain a lot of things.."

"There's no way, there's no such thing as time travel, it's _impossible_."

"I know.. I just.. I don't understand what could possibly have made her this _upset_ otherwise! Even if we assume—very uncharitably—that she got unrealistically attached to the idea of him or something, that still wouldn't explain her just _giving_ us her phone, while in the same breath calmly reasserting that she's in the right." Caroline shook her head. "Those aren't the actions of a petulant teen, they're the actions of an adult in a situation they have no control over, but who's determined to stick to their guns."

"..Should we ask her to tell us something from the future to prove it?"

"I don't know how well that would work; it would have to be something prior to this year, since apparently he didn't die last time, and I don't know if we would have shared anything like that."

"..didn't you say Jodi has a psychology degree? Could she tell from a story Abigail told if it was true, or at least if Abigail believed it was true?"

"We'd have to tell Jodi, though, and that seems like an enormous breach of trust."

"We could ask Abigail first..?"

Caroline considered this. "..alright. I'll go ask." She walked back to the door. "I'm sorry to come back already, but after some discussion, your father and I decided that while fantastical, your story _does_ explain all the strange things we've noticed about your behavior this year."

"But you still don't believe it. I can hear it in your voice."

"We wanted to ask if you would be willing to let Jodi listen to a story fr—"

"Because of her Psych degree. Sure. Bring her over, let's parade the weirdo around, shall we."

Caroline blinked. "I didn't know you knew about that."

"I didn't. It's amazing what you pick up around Kaleb. He's scary perceptive."

"I.. see. As a gesture of good faith, would you like your phone back?"

"No."

"No?"

"Not until you believe me."

"I'll.. go get Jodi, then?"

"Sure."

* * *

Jodi looked at Caroline incredulously. "You want me to see if Abigail is making up a story.. about how she's reliving three years, and that she married the farmer."

Caroline nodded slowly. "She won't budge. Pierre threatened to take her phone, because he was getting frustrated, and she just.. threw it out the door, said it was to make a point. I even tried to give it back and she wouldn't take it."

"..Alright, then. Lead the way."

The two returned, and walked to Abigail's door. "Abigail? It's Jodi."

"What story am I telling?"

Jodi blinked at the curt response. "Caroline?"

"We had hoped you would share how you and the farmer started dating."

There was a snort. "Buckle up." There was a brief silence, then Abigail's voice came from much closer to the door. "A little background first: Kaleb and I had been going into the mines for a while by that point; it was easier with the two of us, and he later admitted that he kind of saw them as not-dates, and I kinda did too. Anyway, so we were fighting off a bunch of slimes, but for whatever reason they were really nasty that time, Maru said something about sulfur dioxide content and sulfuric acid, but it went over my head. She was mostly talking to him, and I was probably looking at his butt. Who knows."

Caroline and Jodi stared at each other in amazement. "Regardless, I was looking one way, and next thing I knew he dove between me and one that had jumped at me, like a fucking _moron_ —he swore up and down he thought he could knock it away or whatever, but I think he's just an idiot—and it damn near burned through his shoulder. I had to cart his stupid ass all the way to Harvey, and he was unconscious for _three fucking days_ , and somehow Harvey didn't think to mention this to him because when he came to and I went in yelling 'what are you thinking', he went _off_ , like, he just could not understand why I was so upset, cause despite being perceptive he's about as dense as Morris's ego."

Jodi snickered, and Caroline couldn't stop a smile, but didn't say anything. "So he yells at me like a jerk, and I yell at him, and I storm out, and then dad and I had a row because I was trying to buy a bouquet and he wouldn't let me, but you told him to chill, and I don't know how the rest of that went cause I was outta there. I walked in, and Harvey tried to say he didn't want to see anyone, but I just pushed him out of my way."

Caroline blinked at the admission. "Oh wow."

"Yeah, I was on the warpath, kinda, but also not; I storm back in and he says something to the effect of 'what is your fucking problem you yell and you leave and now you're back why are you so mad anyway,' and I just walked over and thwacked the bouquet down in his lap, and told him 'because I'm worried about you, you asshole!' and then we had a much quieter argument about him being an idiot and how I couldn't bear to lose him, but the fucking dork took the flowers the second I put them down, practically, and from that moment on he started to say 'we', instead of 'I' and 'you', so even though we were arguing I knew he loved me too."

"..Abigail, I am _so_ sorry; this must have been _so_ hard for you, to lose him like that, especially considering.."

"..Yeah. It's been rough." There was a pause. "So you believe me, then, Jodi?"

"You suddenly became a completely different person, just now. Also there is no way you would make up that you got together _during_ a fight with the boy you were interested in, that falls squarely in the realm of 'you can't make this shit up'."

Abigail laughed. "Man, that was just life with Kaleb, like, _all the time_."

"But also, your details are consistent with how people usually remember things; no weirdly overly detailed or vague sections, and you just kind of.. went. Either you rehearsed that for hours, or it's true."

"I can do another; I've got about two and a half years' worth, I can do a _lot_ more than one more."

Caroline spoke quietly. "..Will you come out and tell us? If he's that important to you.. I should know more about him."

The door opened slowly; Abigail looked like _hell_. The barest hint of a smile graced her features. "..The first thing I ever said to him was 'You're kind of an abrasive guy, aren't you?'"

Caroline's jaw dropped. "What?! You were so polite this time!"

"Yeah, cause he threatened to deck Morris, and that's just.. _so_ out of character; _everything_ about the way he acted this time was just.. _heartbreaking_ , but it's apparently crucial he doesn't find out about the loops, according to Rasmodius."

"How do you know Rasmodius?!"

Abigail started. "Wait, _you_ know him?!" There was a beat. "Oh my god. Okay, we're talking about that, _later_."

"..How did you..?"

"I learned a lot from Kaleb. That was kinda his thing. Anyway, this is the last loop Ras'll be around, something something magical interference, so he's teaching me to do a nature potion thing that Kaleb needs to take to be connected to the nature spirits of the valley; I know this sounds crazy, but I've seen them, they're definitely real."

"The.. Junimo, right?"

"Huh. Yeah, that. Anyway, he said that Kaleb can't know, but he's.. dead, so I can tell you. But I couldn't let on to _him_ , which is why I was so distant, cause the only other explanation for why I know so much is that I'm a stalker."

"You weren't sick, you were coping with your husband not knowing who you were, and also that he was incredibly depressed."

"Yeah. But anyway, let's go to the living room; I know dad's probably dying out there, but he's been patient, which I appreciate."

"..Yeah." Caroline smiled. "I'm proud of you, Abigail. Dealing with all this, and in such a mature way.. At least you won't have to convince us next time."

"Oh, no, you won't Remember. We're not sure what the conditions are for Remembering, but it's got to do with Kaleb somehow, so I'd be surprised if anyone new Remembered. Hell, _I_ might not even Remember, as scary as that is."

"..oh. I see why you've been despairing."

Abigail shrugged. "I'll pull through. I always have, I always will. If god wants me dead, fucker can come down here and kill me personally."

"I take it that was something he used to say?"

"Only at the beginning. He didn't feel like he needed to, as time went on. We were really happy together."

"I'm glad to hear it."

* * *

And so life moved on, as it always does.

_Next time. Next time will be better._

_I'll make **sure** of it._


End file.
